Three dimensional graphics is becoming critical to the future of computer software and hardware. Increasingly, applications will require the ability to create or render 3-dimensional representations within images. These 3D images provide a natural communication medium for visually-oriented humans. The advent of affordable 3D computer technology is taking this out of the realm of research and military simulation and into the mainstream commercial market dominated by personal computers (PC's) and low cost set-tops, or consoles.
The rendering of 3D images involves the creation of a database describing a 3D object or environment, the mathematical transformation of this database into surfaces such as polygons that can be further transformed into 2D representations, suitable for display as projected 3D information on a 2D display. The methods for these transformations are well known, and have been implemented in both software and hardware for many years.
Reducing the cost of generating real-time 3D graphics may become critical to the advance of computer software applications. Visualization for education and training, financial analysis, interactive advertising and other areas will rely on 3D methods, and have been explored in academic and professional circles for over a decade. As 3D technology becomes more sophisticated and pervasive, it will possibly become the preferred paradigm for human/computer visual interaction. This would leverage the lifetime of 3D visual training the majority of humans undergo, where huge portions of our cognitive capacity relates to interpretation of 3D visual information.
Content is the material which is conveyed to customers over a communications medium. Although content is infinitely variable, the methods for conveying it are limited by practical considerations, such as mass market methods for distribution. Magazines, newspapers, books, film and television are all examples of widely used mediums for distribution of content. These are largely passive methods of content delivery.
Computer technology enables the creation and distribution of interactive content. Three dimensional images are one form of delivery of that content, allowing communication in that familiar paradigm. The delivery of 3D images and content to customers currently takes place in stand-alone and distributed computer systems. Stand alone systems (such as video game consoles) usually rely on delivery of pre-generated programs and images via a hard medium such as a disc or cartridge. Distributed systems (such as the Internet or private intranets) allow more dynamic offerings. This latter model is likely the superior distribution method for the future, allowing much more current and dynamic content.
In the current network model, storage and caching of content and applications take place on a centralized server, but the actual software applications execute on a system in the customer's user space (home or office). This is the client/server model. This allows the server to supply resources beyond the constraints of a remote terminal, while taking advantage of cost-effective desktop systems for some tasks.
Currently, any implementation of systems delivering 3D graphics to a user involves graphics hardware local to the user. This entails several critical deficiencies. Firstly, this requires a costly set-top, where each user requiring 3D graphics must have appropriate hardware. Secondly, since 3D technology is in constant flux, these expensive systems must be continually upgraded, creating an additional expense and a logistical burden. Finally, the nature of this remote hardware eliminates the possibility of central maintenance and coordination of configurations, an important capability, and one which is critical to many applications.
One solution proposed is the placement of low-cost integrated 3D graphics chips in the user system. This solution is deficient because even with mass-market production scales, any such solution would rapidly become obsolete.
Another solution is generally programmable graphics hardware within the user system. This too is impractical, as the capacity of such a system is inherently static and limited.
Service providers cannot afford to place constantly-upgraded hardware on customer premises. The only current market solution which allows the placement of the latest technology in the customer's hands relies on the frequent purchase and upgrade of that product by the customer, such as in the PC model. Yet this method is untenable for the mass-market, as it requires massive outlays to stay current, and does nothing to ameliorate the configuration coordination problem.
Given current solutions, 3D graphics requires frequent updates to the consumers platform, and thus low-cost consumer platform is unattainable. An alternative is to ignore 3D software innovations, a poor choice given the apparent value of 3D graphics.